Bowman, Day

Press Release for Day Bowman's The Compass Series- It is difficult to think of a more direct metaphor for seeking new directions than the compass, yet initially Day Bowman didn't recognise the cross and circle motifs, which kept reappearing in the work, as belonging to a compass. Bowman's large painterly, abstract canvases arrest and move the viewer. Her subjects include the great rituals of birth, sexuality and death. In the Compass series the artist is coming to terms with her husband's sudden and early death and with finding new directions. These works are also very much about healing and regeneration. Bowman is a risk taker. She is far more involved with the process rather then the product. Her work is symbolic, yet also descriptive. In a real sense, colour acts as energy and movement. Gone are the 'cosmetic' colours; earth colours and marine coolness replace them. Employing the surrealist strategy of automatic mark making Bowman allows the unconscious to dictate the movements of the hand with brush and charcoal. The resulting marking is both sensuous and playful. Art requires 'eternal vigilance' as Bowman has often said. She is intensely self critical; frequently re-working canvasses and destroying others.

Contact details
  Day  Bowman
0208 960 5892

Primary Art Form
Visual Arts and Designer Makers

Other Artform categories
Printmaking